Maybe This Will Help
by masked7
Summary: Gaara hadn't had someone to confide in since Yashamaru's death, and even a year after his eye opening encounter with Naruto in Konohagakure, he wasn't looking. So, naturally, Kankuro took it upon himself to help him without his asking; and when a strange illness strains Sunagakure's forces, Gaara has no choice other than to accept it.
1. Chapter 1- Man

Maybe This Will Help

Kankuro didn't breathe.

For a year he'd been slowly growing accustomed to his younger brother's violent fits and inward struggles to contain the hatred his demon harboured. And still it kept him up at night when the usually stoic, self-assured teen struggled in a bed he doesn't need with thoughts that aren't his own.

"Gaara?"

Kankuro didn't really know what he was thinking when he opened his brother's door without knocking, or when he got involved with the nightmares his teacher had told him not to even think of. Gaara's deadpan eyes locked on his older brother's tired form.

He should have been furious. Had he done this when he had let Shukaku roam free in his head, he would be dead. Surely. But the look on his brother's face wasn't one of annoyance, or of inconvenience. His knotted brow and creased lip radiated concern. His brother was worried.

"Did I wake you?"

Kankuro shook his head. "I couldn't sleep, anyway."

He took a step forward, looking to Gaara for conformation that he wouldn't be killed if he continued. Gaara nodded.

"Do you want company?"

Gaara thought about that for a moment. No one had ever really _wanted_ to keep him company. He looked at the floor in concentration. When he lifted his head to look at Kankuro, the brunette cocked an eyebrow.

"Did Baki send you?" Gaara's voice was cold.

Kankuro shook his head, smirking and sitting beside his brother. "No, you just seemed like you needed your brother."

It was Gaara's turn to cock his non-existent eyebrow. He'd never needed Kankuro before. What could he possibly do to ease the pain of a vengeful demon eating at the sanity he held very fragilely from a thin string due to break at any moment. Kankuro could see the questions start to bubble in his little brother's brain.

"I meant, maybe you wanna talk about it?" He explained.

"No."

"Oh… well, I guess I could talk instead. I haven't told you about the time I single handily completed an A ranked mission in one afternoon, have I?"

Gaara had heard this story many times. It wasn't very interesting, but the way Kankuro delivered it with such pride and enthusiasm made him engaged, though just as confused. The mission was nothing more than intel recovery, but the way his brother jumped up and acted out every move he had made on the mission was entertaining.

Kankuro was exhausted. Gaara's struggle had kept him awake every night this week, and although the odd two hours of sleep was awarded to him after training and when Gaara was away, he'd only really had six to seven hours sleep the whole week. Every move he made pulled on his muscles and he wrestled with his legs to stay standing. He didn't understand why Gaara couldn't sleep, even though Baki had explained it many times. His father hadn't explained it as much, though he offered an example when he'd ordered Yashamaru to kill Gaara. He didn't know what else had happened then, but he knew what happened when Gaara lost control. That's why he had to stay awake. That's why Kankuro stayed up.

No one should have to struggle like this alone.

Especially his little brother.

"Kankuro, you're falling asleep," Gaara pointed out flatly, his gaze on the older boy beside him. "Go to bed."

Kankuro hadn't realised he'd stopped talking, and his obvious confusion made Gaara stand in front of him with his arms crossed over his chest. "Kankuro."

He offered a lop-sided grin to his younger brother, scratching his head. "I don't want to sleep just yet. Why don't we go for a walk?"

Gaara was confused for what felt like the hundredth time that night. Why was Kankuro so determined to stay awake when he was obviously going to collapse any second? He knew that in the last year the two brother's were closer than they've ever been, but something inside Gaara told him that they were still so far apart somehow. As his brother tottered along the sandy footpath along the edge of the Kazekage mansion that they were allowed to stay in despite the death of their father, Gaara felt uneasy at the thought that he might collapse or trip on the uneven path. He readied his sand, though found himself focusing on Kankuro's face. He was concentrated, though also distant. Whatever the reason for his strange will to accompany him through another sleepless night, Gaara appreciated it. His brother was definitely trying, and that was more than enough to make him happy.

"Gaara?"

He gave his brother his full attention, and when he noticed he had stopped, Gaara did the same.

"I've been thinking… how does it feel to never sleep? Do you ever get tired?"

Gaara frowned. Kankuro knew that Shukaku's chakra aided him in his endless consciousness.

Kankuro shook his head. "I mean, do you ever get sick of it? Always being aware of everything, of _him_. Never getting a break…"

Gaara stared at his brother. He understood.

Kankuro was _pitying_ him.

Gaara wanted to be angry, but when Kankuro looked away when he didn't get an answer, he sighed. They continued on.

"I don't know. I've never known anything else. Maybe if I knew what it was like to never hear him, I would long for it. Right now, I'm too used to it for it to bother me."

Kankuro nodded. He looked up at the dust-filled sky, pulled up by a man up ahead with a broom and a hunch. When Gaara had stopped, though, Kankuro was on edge. He looked at Gaara's frown, then followed his gaze to the man in front of them.


	2. Chapter 2- At Least Someone Cares

The man's eyes were white.

Kankuro and Gaara had both seen eyes similar, in the Hyuga clan from Konoha.

Though, this was different.

This man could not see.

This man could not see, though it wasn't that he was blind.

This man could not see because he was dead.

Gaara started towards the man, though Kankuro reached for his arm and grabbed his sleeve. Gaara turned back quickly and frowned at the older boy, but the look on Kankuro's face made him refrain.

He was horrified.

"Stay here."

Gaara continued on, assuring Kankuro that he would be fine. Not ready to let his brother get hurt, though, Kankuro ignored his order and followed closely behind.

Gaara's frown deepened when the man collapsed. Kankuro began to rush to the man, but a shadow quickly passed over their heads and a figure landed in front of them. Gaara's sand shot up to protect Kankuro, who was now in front of him, but when a familiar voice broke the tension, it slowly trailed back into his gourd.

"Don't come any closer," Baki warned.

Kankuro stepped back to stand beside Gaara, but the younger brother only stared at their teacher with a stern expression.

"What's wrong with him?" Kankuro asked, his voice low.

Baki walked towards the pair and placed a large hand on Kankuro's shoulder. "I'll explain everything to you. All of you," he stated as he nodded towards Gaara. Kankuro nodded.

"For now, though, go home. It isn't safe here." With that, both Baki and the body disappeared in a burst of sand and dust.

Once home, the siblings all sat in the kitchen in silence. The cream coloured walls and floors were freakishly clean, thanks to Temari's vigorous cleaning sprees and her refusal of any housemaids. Kankuro stared into his black coffee. A disorientated face bore into his soul, a face that was his, but looked like his father. If him and Temari were afraid of Gaara because of Shukaku, Gaara and Temari were afraid of him because he looked like their father; an evil, demented man who used his son to harbour a demon; honed his eldest son's puppetry and political skills in hopes of him succeeding him as Kazekage; and neglected his daughter's skills half because she was a girl, and half because of her lack of calmness.

Temari had joined them at the table, sitting beside Gaara and in front of Kankuro.

"Any ideas?"

Kankuro shook his head, but Gaara's eyes narrowed in concentration. His glare was so intense it seemed as if the wooden table he was glaring down would suddenly melt under its heat and pressure.

"Yesterday morning I overheard two councilmen talking about a case similar to this in the land of water."

Kankuro and Temari looked at each other, then Temari gave Gaara a sober look. "Now that you mention it, Baki was acting strange yesterday."

"He even skipped our training session," Kankuro frowned as he recalled the memory.

Temari's eyes suddenly beamed, and both her younger brothers shared their confused looks.

"Do you think we'll be sent to investigate?"

Kankuro's eyes lit up, as well. They hadn't had a decent mission since their father's death, and although they were all still technically genin, they craved a mission that required skill, strength and ability. Their level of skill was far beyond genin level.

When Temari started to fiddle with her shirt sleeve out of frustration, mainly due to the lack action they'd had in the past year, Kankuro cleared his throat loudly. Temari and Gaara both looked right into his dark chocolate coloured eyes. He sighed quietly.

"Baki doesn't trust us enough to send us anywhere. You're too fidgety," he laughed hollowly as he jerked his head towards Temari, ignoring her deep frown as he continued.

"Gaara's been having too many 'visits'," he tried to say without making eye contact with the red head, almost instantly regretting the use of the term he used to explain Gaara's violent psychological breakdowns with Shukaku.

"And I haven't slept in…" he trailed off suddenly when he'd realised what he was saying. He could feel his brother's turquoise eyes burning into his forehead as he'd done with the table.

"Never mind. You get the picture. Baki thinks we're weak."

The very word made Gaara's blood boil. Weak? He could destroy the village in one swift movement.

 **NO YOU COULDN'T. I COULD. WITHOUT ME, THE MOST DAMAGE YOU COULD DO IS KNOCK AN OLD LADY OVER AND SPILL HER GROCERIES.**

Gaara frowned deeply at the demon's abrupt invasion of his thoughts.

 _Shut up._

When Gaara looked up, both of his siblings were giving him strange looks. He took a second to realise that they were very different looks, though. Temari's eyes were narrowed, and her frown was light but still hard to miss. She was confused, but also a little annoyed that he seemed to have zoned out. Kakuro, though, had a very sympathetic look about him. His eyes were gentle, the likes of which he'd never show in public.

As weird as it was to admit, it made him feel… loved.

 **YOU'RE NOT LOVED, IDIOT. HE'S WORRIED YOU'LL KILL HIM, BECAUSE YOU'RE CRAZY. AND I** _ **OWN**_ **YOU, BITCH.**

"Shut up!"

Gaara's eyes widened for a second, and saw it coming when Temari's eyes widened in shock.

And fear.

"Gaara? What's wrong?"

When he went to stand, to leave the room before he snapped at the demon and unintentionally severed the bond he'd taken a year to form with his siblings, Kankuro quickly rushed to defend him.

"It's fine. We have this thing where we communicate through facial expressions," he explained.

When Gaara's face was completely blank, and Temari's flooded with confusion and annoyance at the possibility that she'd been lied to, Kankuro continued to feed his lie.

"Well, when you crunch up your face like this, and stick your tongue out for a second, it means, 'you look stupid'," he tried, his face in a strange and uncomfortable position as Temari burst out laughing.

"You look stupid doing that!"

Gaara frowned at his brother, though it was out of confusion rather than anger. Why had he done that? Why was he so suddenly defending him and worrying over him? He wasn't as scared of him as he used to be. In a way, that made him very happy. In another way, it made him confused.

"What does that look mean, then?" Temari asked sarcastically as Kankuro smiled at his brother.

Gaara looked at him.

"It means, can I have the rest of your coffee?" He grinned sheepishly.

The red head pushed the cup across the table with a small trail of sand that had been lingering in the air. Temari kicked Kankuro's leg from underneath the table.

"Ow!"

"Don't take his coffee, idiot! I'll just make you another one," she spat harshly at the puppeteer, standing in a huff.

"It's alright. I wasn't drinking it." Gaara's cool tone caught Temari off guard.

He was suddenly less on edge. Kankuro's messing around had made him feel better. As much as it pained her to do so, she shot a thankful glance in the brunette's direction.

Then her blood ran cold.

His head was slumped on the table.


	3. Chapter 3- Helpless

Gaara was the first to react.

"Kankuro?" He asked in as steady a voice as he could manage, panic clawing its way through his mind.

His brother didn't move.

As Temari rushed to him and shook his shoulder gently, then more desperately, Gaara's insides twisted up painfully.

 _What is this feeling?_

 **ARE YOU TALKING TO ME?**

 _No. Shut up._

 **WELL DON'T TALK TO YOURSELF, WEIRDO.**

Ignoring the annoying comment the demon left him, the jinchuriki stood from his chair and rushed to Kankuro, looking down at his peaceful features with a horrible feeling sitting in his gut.

"He's breathing," Temari clarified with a relieved sigh, though both siblings found themselves feeling no better.

What was wrong with their brother?

"I'll call a medic," Temari announced with a steady tone.

She was afraid, but her brother was more important right now.

Gaara had the sudden urge to yell at her to come back as her blonde head disappeared through the doorway.

He was alone with Kankuro.

Gaara looked down at his brother.

He'd passed out; he was fine earlier, when he was joking around and asking for his…

His coffee…

Gaara looked down at the coffee still held tightly in his brother's hand, his long tanned fingers still wrapped around the handle-less cup. Gaara's gaze was ripped from it, though, when he noticed that Kankuro's mouth was slightly open, and a thin trail of blood dripped down the side of his face.

"Kankuro!"

Gaara knelt beside his brother and hesitantly touched his cheek. His face was hot. A light frown was plastered on his face, and as Gaara just began to freak out at the fact that his brother could be dying, his dark brown eyes fluttered open sleepily, and a groan of pain escaped his thin lips.

"Kankuro…" Gaara sighed in relief, wanted desperately to show just how elated he was to see that Kankuro was awake, but lacking the social skills to pull anything off.

Gaara used his sand to help Kankuro sit up, and caught him in it when he failed to stand.

"Ugh… What happened?" The brunette asked wearily, not fully conscious. Gaara hesitated, not very versed in comforting people, or even showing affection in that manner.

Gaara used his sand to sit his older brother back down, and despite the thick line of his comfort zone he placed a hand on Kankuro's shoulder.

"You passed out." Gaara stated factually.

Kankuro held his head in his hand, and a worried look quickly set on Gaara's face.

The sudden thought that Kankuro could be in pain, or possibly dying, made Gaara feel hurt.

Scared.

 **FEAR? DO I SENSE FEAR? YOUR TEACHER IS RIGHT! HAH, YOU'RE WEAKER THAN CAT BOY! AND HE'S GOT SUIMINBYO.**

Gaara froze, has hand placed on Kankuro's cheek now.

Still hot.

 _Suiminbyo? What is that? Will he be okay?_

Shukaku laughed, horribly and humorous.

 **OKAY? HE'S PRETTY MUCH DEAD ALREADY.**

Gaara's heart stopped.

 _Dead._

 _Kankuro will die._

 _Kankuro can't die._

 _He can't._

 **WHY DO YOU CARE ALL OF A SUDDEN? REMEMBER WHEN YOU TOLD HIM YOU WOULD KILL HIM IF HE QUESTIONED YOU? I DO. AH, I MISS THE DAYS WHEN YOU DIDN'T GIVE A SHIT ABOUT ANYONE. WHY CAN'T YOU BE LIKE THAT NOW? WHY DOES IT MATTER IF ONE MORE PERSON DIES?**

"He's not just another person!" Gaara cried, for the first time in a year a hot tear fell from his burning eyes.

Kankuro looked up at Gaara from his place on the kitchen chair, his head lifted from his palm that was soothing his head ache.

Who was he talking about?

 **YOU THREATENED TO KILL HIM BEFORE. WHY IS IT DIFERENT NOW?**

"Because he's my brother!" Gaara was angry now, and the rage he harboured for Shukaku was evident in the look on his face.

Despite Kankuro's suddenly aching limbs, he took Gaara's hand in his.

Gaara looked down at him in shock.

Kankuro was smiling sadly.

"Gaara, I know we've had our differences in the past, but I need you to listen to me."

Gaara nodded gingerly, his eyes glistening.

"Baki is hiding something. I don't know what's happening, but he will know."

"Shukaku knows."

The older boy stiffened. Shukaku? Was he talking to him right now?

"Listen, asshole-"

Gaara's face retorted in shock, hurt instantly taking over his features. He let go of his brother's hand and stepped back, his lip unconsciously quivering at the outburst.

Kankuro gasped and stood shakily. "I was talking to Shukaku! Sorry, Gaara." He smiled warmly. The older boy slowly reached for Gaara's hand again, and it instantly made them both feel better.

 **WAIT, EXCUSE YOU?**

Kankuro took a deep breath and started again, his brow knotted in concentration.

"I don't know what to say to a demon that ruined my life with my brother, but don't you dare say anything to upset him!"

 **TELL HIM TO GO DIE IN A HOLE.**

 _No._

 **DO IT!**

 _NO._

 **WUSS.**

Gaara snapped out of Shukaku's hold to meet Kankuro's eyes.

They were unsteady, and it seemed he was losing consciousness again. he hesitated, not wanting to have to go through that again.

"K-Kankuro!"

 _How do I help him?_

 **ARE YOU TALKING TO ME?**

 _Yes, idiot. What the hell do I do?_

 **KILL HIM. LET HIM GO IN PEACE.**

"No! I'm not killing him! Stop complaining and help him! Are you afraid I'll stop listening to you? Afraid you'll be alone? Because face it, you were all I had, and now you're not. You're only not helping him because you're _scared._ You're scared that I'll like him better. And let's face it, I _already_ like him better."

 **...**

Kankuro's eyes were wide. When had Gaara started to fight back against Shukaku for his sake?

He froze.

Is that what his constant fights with the demon were at night?

Was he struggling to keep him from killing them? Him?

The puppeteer smiled for a second, though as soon as their sister sprinted into the kitchen with two medic ninja and Baki in tow, his smile fell.

What had happened to him?

And why was it enough for all of their eyes to be coated in fear.


	4. Chapter 4- Resist

Temari's fan was in her hands, covered in bandages from her training. She stood in front of Baki, who was in a battle stance.

"Get away from him!" Temari yelled, her strong voice piercing the silence in the room. Gaara was about to frown deeply, but when his sister's tough, teal eyes locked on Kankuro, his eyes widened in confusion.

"What?" Kankuro tried.

"Gaara, come here. It's dangerous," Baki whispered to the red head.

Gaara didn't budge.

"Gaara, now!" Temari barked, causing both her brothers to jump.

Kankuro, in fear.

Gaara, in shock.

She'd never spoken to him that way.

 **KILL HER, TOO.**

 _Shut up._

Gaara crossed his arms over his chest.

"I won't move unless you tell me what's going on."

He looked at Baki.

The medics behind Temari and Baki slipped past, holding their arms up in defence. Gaara frowned, looking to Kankuro. He wasn't looking so good.

"Gaara, the medics will take care of him. There's something I should've told you."

Gaara didn't move.

"Now."

"What?"

"Tell me now."

A long breath escaped Baki's lungs.

"Kankuro has Suiminbyo."

Gaara's heart stopped.

Shukaku was right.

 **WHAT DID YOU EXPECT?**

"There was a secret core in poisons in the Puppet Corps," Baki explained. "The Poison Core's leader, Ito Goro, created a jutsu in between a poison and a genjutsu."

All three siblings stiffened, though Kankuro's eyes lit up with understanding.

"I've heard stories in the Puppet Corps. He used it to trap his victims with his poison, then finish them off while they're in a trance. It was a dirty move for a puppeteer, but his research was impressive."

"Don't praise him just yet, Kankuro. The jutsu corrupted chakra and spread like an infectious disease. The Poison Core was diminished, and the jutsu was banned… There's no cure." Baki's tone hadn't meant to be harsh, though when he'd lifted his gaze to see the grim expressions of his students, he wished he knew how to pull off a light attitude to lift the mood from terrible to at least a little bearable.

"We will do everything we can to help. We're so close to finding a cure, I can feel it!" One medical ninja, a girl with very short, slightly curly brown hair and her headband tied across the top of her head, blurted out suddenly. Temari looked down at her, already, almost automatically, perceiving her as weak. Temari's lip creased, and she leaned on her fan, about to comment.

"Thank you." Gaara uttered slowly, closing his eyes before anyone looked at him strange. He wasn't in the mood to cop shit. His brother was dying.

"We need to move him from here, before it spreads," the other medic ninja, a shorter boy with dark blue hair tied into a small, tight high ponytail, added quickly.

Kankuro frowned, not wanting to go with them and leave his siblings, his family, but Gaara placed a hand on his shoulder.

Temari went to object, but Baki held her back. She nodded cautiously, worrying for both Gaara, and Kankuro.

"We will come and see you," Gaara assured.

Kankuro nodded, and the Medical ninja escorted him out.

The tension had left the room for a second, but when Baki sat at the table in a huff, it was Temari's turn to question him.

"Where are they taking him?"

"The Puppet Corps."

"Not the hospital?" Gaara frowned, his arms folded once again.

"No," Baki began. "There had been tests going on for a cure there when the illness first showed up-"

"Tests!" Temari gasped, her heart racing.

"Will they do tests on Kankuro?" Gaara asked seriously, his tone laced with anger.

 _I won't let them._

"They might."

Both Gaara and Temari's breath hitched, and their eyes met.

"I won't let them," Gaara stated factually. When he started towards the door, Baki went to stop him.

"No, stop. If you want Kankuro to have a chance, you have to let him do this."

He hesitated, but nodded.

 **THAT WAS EASY. THINK HE'LL DIE?**

…

 **HE PROBABLY WILL**

…

…

 **ARE YOU IGNORING ME?**

…

 **YOU ARE! HOW DARE YOU!**

Shukaku fought to take Gaara's control, but he didn't seem at all fazed, resisting it almost too well.

… **WHAT?**

 _Shut up._

…

Gaara left the room, and Baki and Temari exchanged glances.

"Will he be alright?" Baki asked Temari, watching her eyes fall to the floor.

"I hope so."


	5. Chapter 5- The Office

The cool night air lay still as Gaara walked the streets alone. Well, he wished he was alone.

 **STILL NOT TALKING TO ME?**

Gaara ignored him, continuing on.

…

Gaara's eyes drifted to the clear desert skies of his village. His footsteps were muffled by the odd sounds of families inside their houses, drinking and having a good time. He heard a woman yelling, though the vicious tone she harboured reminded him of Temari scolding Kankuro when he spoke his mind too often, or hid away in his room building puppets or testing poisons. She hated it when he did that, said it was too dangerous when he didn't know how immune he was to it. He'd argue that it was to build immunity, not test his immunity, though it didn't sit well with Gaara, either. His brother would be in the next room whimpering and wincing in pain when he'd underestimate the dosages or concentrations, and although in the past year their bond had grown considerably, he never liked it before then, either.

They had played together as kids, very occasionally, and when they had Gaara felt loved. His brother praised his abilities rather than feared them, as he had later done. One thing that always annoyed him, though, was his father's interference with their time together. Kankuro and Temari both tried to play with him as very young children, but as they got older it was much harder to defy their father's orders. They eventually stopped coming altogether, and Gaara was all alone.

They were there, now. That was the important thing. His father was dead; there was no higher power keeping them from him.

Gaara couldn't help but feel that if things were different, if he weren't a jinchuriki, he would've had a life with his family.

 **NOTHING YOU CAN DO ABOUT IT NOW. HEY, WHY DON'T YOU KILL THAT GUY? THAT ONE RIGHT THERE. I'D LIKE THAT. YOU WOULD TOO. I KNOW YOU WOULD.**

Gaara frowned, about to lash out at the demon, but noticed something strange about the person in front of him.

His heart stopped.

"Kankuro?"

The colour drained from Gaara's face as his brother stumbled about in front of him, almost about to fall.

Without thinking, Gaara started to rush to him, his sand a few paces ahead of him to soften his brother's fall if needed.

Kankuro didn't speak, he only reached for his younger brother until his legs gave out. Gaara's sand caught him, keeping him up.

"Kankuro, what are you doing here? I need to get you back. Can you-"

Kankuro gave a faint smile, then closed his eyes. A second later, Gaara watched as Kankuro's skin turned a golden brown, and his body started to fall through his fingers as it turned to sand. A sand clone. But who?

 **WHAT THE…? LOOKS LIKE SOMEONE'S PLAYING WITH YOU. LET'S KILL THEM.**

Gaara breathed in deep, not having quite recovered yet.

"I think I just might."

 **AWW DON'T BE LIKE- WAIT, WHAT?**

 _You heard me. Tell me what's happening to my brother, and whoever is doing it, I will kill them._

 **HUH. WELL, IF YOU PUT IT THAT WAY. HE'LL HAVE HALLUCINATIONS SOON BEFORE PASSING OUT. WHEN HE PASSES OUT, HE WILL GO THROUGH A SITUATION IN HIS HEAD WHERE HIS LIFE WILL BE THREATENED- A GENJUTSU, IN A WAY I SUPPOSE. IF HE DIES, HE WILL NEVER WAKE UP.**

Gaara's stomach caved in, and his legs didn't seem fully functional as he processed what Shukaku was telling him.

 _Never wake up._

 _How do I help him?_

 **YOU NEED TO KILL THE CASTER.**

…

…

 **OKAY, OKAY. THAT CAN WORK- JUST SAYING. BUT YOU NEED TO MAKE A POTION FROM A FLOWER IN THE EASTERN DESERT. IT'S CALLED THE PURPLE MOON BLOSSOM. YOU'LL KNOW IT WHEN YOU SEE IT.**

 _How long… does he have before he passes out?_

 **A DAY AT BEST.**

Gaara could have screamed. He was running out of time. He had to warn Kankuro.

As he began to run down the street, Shukaku grunted.

 **WHAT ARE YOU DOING?**

 _Warning him._

… **OH. WELL, I'LL LEAVE YOU TO THAT.**

 _I wish you could._

…

Gaara made it to what he was sure was the puppet core, and raced up the stairs. A young woman was behind the desk, and when she looked up with a smile it instantly dropped. Her eyes filled with fear as Gaara's blank face met her on the other side of her desk.

"H-how can I help…" she stammered shakily, her hand hovering over a small button on the side of the desk.

"Kankuro is here. I need to see him." He said simply.

The woman seemed hesitant. She shuffled through some files, but didn't seem to be reading anything. Gaara watched as she tried to stall, but started to get irritated when seconds turned to minutes.

" _Now._ " Gaara warned, his glare not faltering as her terrified brown eyes looked up at him.

"Medic ward, to your left. Go down the stairs, take another left and it's the door at the end of the hall. E13."

Gaara didn't give her another glance, his frown deep and concentrated. As he strode off and turned the corner, determined to see his brother, a medic ninja appeared from the stairway. He tried to walk past, but the medic didn't move.

"Gaara-sama! You're here. Baki told you everything, I'm guessing. I'll bring you to Kankuro."

It took Gaara a while, but when the medic turned around and led him down the stairs he suddenly remembered. It was the little medic girl from their kitchen.

"How is he?" Gaara asked.

The girl hesitated in front of him, searching for the right words to say.

"Alive."

The two of them turned into the hall. The bright red sign at the top of the entrance reading 'emergency' should have sent his head spiralling in denial and make him accept the situation his brother was in, but the red head's mind only did this when the medic opened the door.

His brother was sitting up in bed, taking to the other medic they were with earlier. There were cords and tubes connected to the brunette's arms and face, and although he still had a large smile plastered on his face, his eyes radiated fear.

"Gaara. You came," he grinned. Gaara nodded as if to say, 'of course'.

"Hokusai was just telling me what was wrong with me. I'm gonna get out alive, don't worry." He grinned sheepishly, a small line of sweat dripping down the side of his face.

Gaara nodded, relieved that if he hadn't made it in time, he would have been warned anyway. He sat beside Kankuro, closing his eyes as he listened to his in depth talk to the medic boy, who he later discovered to be Hokusai Toma, and the girl, Chizu Ueda, about how some poisons have a devastating impact on cellular respiration, while one that Kankuro had used once was very similar.

 _How do you know as much as you do?_

 **WHO, ME?**

…

 **OKAY, WELL IT'S A LONG STORY. WOULDN'T WANT TO BORE YOU.**

…

 **OKAY, OKAY… JEEZ. ITO GORO IS A VERY WELL KNOWN PUPPETEER. EVEN CAT BOY KNEW HIM.**

 _He's smarter than you think he is._

 **WHATEVER. ANYWAY, WHEN THE LAST OUTBREAK DEVASTATED THE VILLAGE, A LOT OF RESEARCH WAS DONE TO STOP IT. WHO COULD BE DOING THIS IS BEYOND ME, HE SHOUD BE DEAD BY NOW.**

 _So no one knows what happened to him?_

 **WELL, HE DISAPPEARED. COULD BE A FORMER STUDENT, OR A SUPER FAN OR SOMETHING.**

 _Were there articles published?_

 **DUH.**

 _Where are they?_

 **YOUR DAD'S OLD OFFICE IS A GOOD PLACE TO START**

Gaara frowned. He didn't want to go there in the slightest, but Kankuro was his priority right now. When Gaara was sure Kankuro would be safe in Hokusai and Chizu's hands, he made for one of the places tied to the man who had ruined his life.

Rasa's old office.


	6. Chapter 6- Time and Pain

"How long did he say he'd be gone?"

Temari had spent the last ten minutes sitting beside Kankuro trying to get an idea of where Gaara might have run off too. Her hair was falling out and her face was red from the run to the Puppet Corps from home. She would have been fine had she not been training when her brothers had called her in to discuss the strange man in the street and Baki's weird attitude towards it. Kankuro scratched his head, leaning back against the wall.

"He kinda just left. I hope he's okay," he sighed looking down at his hands with sleepy eyes. He really hadn't gotten much sleep the past few days, and this constant pressure to stay awake wasn't helping his nerves. Kankuro knew that whatever was going to happen when he finally slept wasn't going to be fun, but it was up to him to stay alive for his siblings. He really was under a lot of pressure.

"I'll go look for him."

Temari stood to take her leave, but Kankuro hesitated. His siblings were so quick to take off. Did they know that if he slept he might never wake up? He started to wonder if they actually cared.

Kankuro frowned to himself. Of course they did. And if they didn't seem too worried, it was because they believed in him… right?

He snapped out of thought as a hand touched his knee gently. He looked up to meet Temari's glassy teal eyes.

"Stay awake for us," she pleaded quietly.

Kankuro nodded. When she disappeared through the doorway, he couldn't hold back his smile; it was like she'd read his mind.

Gaara pushed the door open slowly. It didn't feel right to be in his dead father's office, but it wasn't guilt for disrespecting the dead that caused this feeling to surface, or mourning over his death. That man was a sad excuse for a father, anyway.

 **THE DRAWER.**

 _You're unusually helpful today._

 **SHUT UP.**

Gaara opened the first draw with his sand, peering over intently to let its contents come into view, flinching a little as it moaned loudly. There was a huge file full of thick clusters of old paper. He knew it'd take him longer than he had to search the whole thing. There were useless looking notes scribbled in black ink sticking out from the segments in the file, but one dark red marking in particular caught his eye.

'Failed'

Gaara swallowed hard. His hand hovered over the segment of the file the note was stuck to. He was frozen, none of his muscles listening to his brain as if they knew better than to heave orders from a mind as lost in thought as his.

 _Failed…_

 **THERE. ROGUE PUPPETEER. AT THE BOTTOM.**

Gaara ignored him.

…

Curiosity overwhelmed him until he found the papers in his hand. He wasn't at all expecting what he saw, though.

Temari wasn't exactly sure if she'd find Gaara in the tower, but her gut was still screaming at her to find him. Quickly. A patrol guard turned the corner, and when he'd noticed her and started to bow his head, she stopped him.

"Have you seen Gaara?"

He looked at her in shock at the sudden, rather violently delivered question. He nodded.

"Yes. He looked determined. Scary. I didn't say anything… I thought he might kill me."

Temari frowned. Despite her brother's actions in the past, she knew he wouldn't hurt anyone unless he absolutely had too. The people of the village hadn't seen his change first hand. They wouldn't understand. But she didn't have time to explain anything. She brushed past him without saying a word. If he was here, he was probably looking for answers. Answers only their father would have.

A picture of Kankuro was clipped to the top left of the file. His fingers traced the edges of the photograph, his mind rolling at a hundred miles per second. He tried to control himself enough to read the notes scribble on the side of Kankuro's picture.

 _Not yet suitable. Work needed to improve skill, anger management and economic knowledge. Another one failed._

Gaara scoffed. That other one must have been him. He'd never imagined Kankuro could be a failure to his father; to anyone. He seemed like the perfect son for a Kazekage. Smart, strong and determined. But as he continued to skim the file, he noticed a common trend.

Kankuro was constantly defying his father's wishes for special training and educational classes. Rasa wanted to teach his son how to be the next Kazekage.

Gaara put the file back, almost forgetting why he had come in the first place.

 **THE FILE.**

Gaara was lost for a slight second, his thoughts racing in a constant battle to overpower one another. His logical side took over and he pulled out the file he needed to help Kankuro without a word. He headed for the door.

Temari had opened the door without thinking. Knocking wasn't something she'd expected she'd need to do when entering a dead man's office, though changed her mind instantly when a thin line of sand hurled towards her. Her fan was out in an instant, though she didn't swing it. The sand stopped with Gaara's swift hand movement, his eyes filled with fear that she may have been hurt.

"I didn't mean…"

She dismissed him with a smile, withdrawing her weapon with shaky hands as she stepped aside for him to walk out.

"How did you know I was here?"

She shrugged.

"Good guess."

The two walked out of the building in silence. Gaara knew it wouldn't be long until Temari would ask about the file he clutched in his hands the whole way through the streets of Sunagakure. When the entrance to the Puppet Corps came into view, she stopped and waited for him to do the same. He did.

"What's that?" She asked without batting an eyelid.

He handed it to her.

"Ito Goro's file. It might be a clue to finding who is doing this."

She nodded slowly, taking it in her hands. She opened it and skimmed through the paragraphs and news stories. Personalised notes were scribbled on the sides in their father's handwriting.

She handed him back his find, and followed him up the steps. Though when Chizu ran out of the doors, flustered and angry, stopping dead in her tracks right in front of Gaara, the siblings froze.

A horrible chill crept up Gaara's spine, and his legs numbed quickly as Chizu stared at them both solemnly.

"What's wrong?" Temari tried quickly, her hope crippling and wilting away as the girl in front of her took a deep breath. She saw Gaara pale from the corner of her eye.

"It's too late," she said quietly.

"He's asleep."


End file.
